The Cecil Whig., 1887-06-18
An Hour with Judge Lynch.


one trait in common one bond of union
/ the absence of all mercy.
'DOn LsOpoldo ~ said Evans tn ming
to plainly garbed, rather swarthy-
faced, but very keen looking Mexican,
I'VE want you to say to these men that
they have not much longer to live We
know that they've murdered poor Muuoz
and his family and ought to be hanged
on sight; for all that we want to do the
| fair thing and will give them chance to
| tell the truth and all they want tn say.
May be one of them had less to do with
IL than the rest"
AZ this lutmatlOu, slight as it was, of
clcmcncy for states evidence. one of
| the cuprltS, who may as well be called
| Tarcla-and while we are naming him,
let us, as matter OF poetic license, de-
slgnate his accessories as NasQueZ and
ltlbera-begtn most piteously to plead
for mercy.
by all the saints in heaven" he
swore. Il had nothing to do with the
murder | was not the one who did it,"
ut makes no difference which of you
did it, " lnterposed the impatient cap
/ tors, we're going to hang you all just
for luck, aud if you can't remember all
about it by the time We let you down,
we II stretch your necks for good"
One after another the murderers dan
gled in the air and were kept there until
learly strangled. Then they were let
down, and from their half az ticuate,
terror stricken utterauces the full horror
CT their crime was CLEANED. Vasquez
and Ribera had committed the murder,
Gracia keeping watch, lying fiat OH the
ground, on the opposite side of the street.
ready to sound low whistle the moment
any one approached. But no providen-
tial footstep, no belatcd gambler home
ward reeling from the scene of his sue
| cesSors or reverseS at the fiesta, scared
away the inhuman butchers from their
deed of blood. Munoz, Dona Louis. and
the little child were murdered almost in
the manner suggested to the quick per-
| ceptionS of those who first entered their
house, and there remained to be cleared
up only the mystery of the place of con-
ceslment of the jewelry and other trim
llets of value which had been the iucen-
| tive to the crime.
II will tell you," said Vasquez, coolly;
you know all now. It's no use trying to
canceal further. We hurled our plunder
directly in font of the Governors house.
We thought that that would be the last
place any one would think of examining
A short distance down the lane which
leads from the Governors house to the
| bishops house, on the right hand side, is
a mesquite tree under it we buried the
| jewelry. Take me there, | will show YOU
the spot"
| There was a chorus of assent to this
proposition. With hands still bound,
but escorted by so strong a guard that
all hope of escape was out of the ques-
tion, NasqueZ led the way-"There
Dig in that spot" \ half dozen spade
fuls of soft earth brought to light
small bundle of gold earrings, bracelets
and watch chains, some of them we'll
marked with blood from the murderers
hands
These men were to hang, and in a very
few minutes. Every hour of grace would
be only so much additional torture; why
not run them down into the bottom and
hang them to the first cottonwoods? But
here spoke out Don Samuel al Amer
lean married to a Mexican lady, and al
most as much a Mexican as an American,
SO far as knowledge of language and Gus
toms went, a clear headed man, a prop
erty holder and Il prominent person in
every sense: Il want to say right here
| that we have caught these men in the
very act, | may say, of foul murder; we
have tried them not by jury of twelve,
but by Il jury of the whole town. BY
that jury and by their own confession,
We have found them guilty. Why hang
them in the Bottom? Why not hang
them on the Plaza ITSELF \ murmur
| OF approval.
while we're about it., added a tail,
quiet looking miner from the Comstock,
why not make a clean job of II? Why
not hang Williss, who was seen by half
dozen good, reputable witnesses to shoot
that Mexican, Flores, in cold blood
year ago? The county can't well afford to
keep him i'll Jail forever, and he's had a
fair trial and been found guilty. This
trying murderer half dozen times
over costs heap of money"
| "les, they might just as well hang
| the whole batch at once" so the great
throng concluded with lightning celebrity,
| Who set in place the strong beams which
formed the gallows? Quien sabe. Who
bought the rope and made ready the
nooses. Quien sabe. Quien sabe was
busy that day and did much that over
Jealous officials might afterward have
liked to find out.
The cathedral bells, which hung on
| horizontal beam in front of the old church
Changed and changed and changed, because
small boys were deputed for this task
and the small boy is never SO conscien-
| tiuus i'll obedience to orders as when his
work involves noise. 1t was a solemn
dreadful scene-that on the Plaza in
front of the church, the gallows, the ex-
ecutoners, the sullen, determined assem-
blage; the thee Mexican murderers were
promptly in place, two of them bold and
| collected, the third faint with fright, sus-
| tained in the arms of two stout men.
mako way"'-and the crowd divides,
to allow the entrance of the party who
had seized upon Jail and jalor and taken
| possession of the fourth murderer whom
they were dragging to his death-a white
faced, cowardly cur. He had III his day
| been desperate character" and in that
role had shot at and manned many poor
wretch drunker than himself or not so
well armed. Half dozen murders were
charged upon his head and one proved. Yet
when his turn came to die, no innocent
child could plead so piteously for mercy.
"Gantlemen, only few days, spare me.
I'll be different man for the rest of my
life. Don't kill poor man in cold blood
Was that what you told FlOres?"
queried one of those nearest him. Didn't
you say you shot to see id Mexican
wriggle? Well, you've got to take dose
of your own medicine and that's all there
is about it.
"Don't let me die like dog-let me
talk to some clergymen."
"By jove, boys, he's right! Let some
one of those 'muchaclos' run over for
Padre Antonio or Padre Francisco, but
tell him to hurry, as we have no time for
foolng" The speaker was a rough man
nered, brawny, handsome fellow from
somewhere down York State, the last
man i'll the world to be credited with any
personal solicitude about matters thco-
logical where himself was was alone con-
cerned. He was too manly not to concede
to others, however, the same freedom of
opinion he demanded for himself. The
swift running boys delivered their mes
sage and returned, heralding the priest,
at whose approach all drew back a re-
spectful distance to allow Kim whispered
converse with the doomed.
Nasquez died mpeuitcnt-that is, he
explained that his whole career had been
SO bad that there was no use in trying to
say prayers in his last hour. Garcia was
believed to be already dead of fright. r.
bera humby confessed his sins, while
Williss, a Protestant, as was said, held
the priests hand in vieclike grip and
listened during the brief time allowed
him to the good mans words.
Twas early morning again. The first
faint flush of dawn once more aroused
the crows upon the tops of toe pitahayas,
and this time the burden of their gossip
was the four strange scaEecrows which
hung from the gallows in front of the
plnrrh in the nlaZl nG Old InSpnn